Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) Shares Sold by Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV decreased its holdings in shares of Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE:ROK) by 2.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 13,354 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 319 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV’s holdings in Rockwell Automation were worth $3,816,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ROK. MCF Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 95.8% during the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 2,332 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $667,000 after buying an additional 1,141 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in Rockwell Automation by 99.1% during the 4th quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,187 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,482,000 after purchasing an additional 2,582 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in Rockwell Automation by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 462,537 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $132,554,000 after purchasing an additional 25,882 shares during the last quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Rockwell Automation by 12.5% during the 4th quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 946 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $270,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of Rockwell Automation by 357.8% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 37,239 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $10,643,000 after buying an additional 29,105 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.75% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Isaac Woods sold 876 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $284.03, for a total transaction of $248,810.28. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,057 shares in the company, valued at $300,219.71. The trade was a 45.32 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matheus De A. G. Viera Bulho sold 293 shares of Rockwell Automation stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.68, for a total value of $75,500.24. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $495,260.96. The trade was a 13.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 3,750 shares of company stock valued at $1,075,923 in the last quarter. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Rockwell Automation Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ROK opened at $253.92 on Tuesday. Rockwell Automation, Inc. has a 1-year low of $215.00 and a 1-year high of $308.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.62, a P/E/G ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $251.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $273.46.

Rockwell Automation (NYSE:ROK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.22. Rockwell Automation had a net margin of 11.38% and a return on equity of 30.17%. Equities analysts predict that Rockwell Automation, Inc. will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Rockwell Automation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. Rockwell Automation’s payout ratio is 65.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on ROK. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Rockwell Automation from $248.00 to $201.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $260.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. KeyCorp reduced their target price on Rockwell Automation from $345.00 to $275.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Stephens upgraded shares of Rockwell Automation from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $275.00 to $350.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Rockwell Automation from $257.00 to $290.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $297.11.

Rockwell Automation Company Profile

Rockwell Automation, Inc provides industrial automation and digital transformation solutions in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. The company operates through three segments, Intelligent Devices, Software & Control, and Lifecycle Services. Its solutions include hardware and software products and services.